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Friday, November 23, 2012

BACK HISTORY: Gables of Legacy, Volume III: The Silver Linings

Gables of Legacy, Volume III:
The Silver Linings

Featured song:
“When We Dance” by
Sting

This song was released years after I wrote “First Love and Forever”
but it fit the situation so perfectly with Michael and Emily that I fell in love
with the song. In this book, when Michael knows he doesn’t have much time left
in this world, I had him dance with Emily to this song. I know I seriously cried
when I wrote that scene.

In some ways, this was
one of the hardest books I’ve ever written. As I’ve mentioned previously, the
idea for this series came to me more as one big story, and I knew early on there
was going to be a death in the family, but it was still difficult to write
about.

Michael Hamilton is a deeply beloved character, as those of you
who have read his story from the beginning will attest to. Having him die of
cancer was an emotional roller coaster for me. As always, I write from
inspiration and I feel like I’m writing a book the way I’m SUPPOSED to write it,
not the way I WANT to write it. I know that many readers were upset by this
event, but I can assure you that no one cried over it more than I did. I went
through a grieving process through the course of this story that I’ve
experienced rarely in my stories. And the effect it had on my readers was a
compliment to me. (Even though some of them were real mad and I actually got
some hate mail.) Michael obviously felt real, or there would be no grief. Of
course, his family members left behind were the ones that we could relate to. I
felt like it was an important learning experience, for me as a writer, and for
my readers. If we can learn something about the grieving process—and making
peace with it—through the experience of fictional characters, then we might be
better prepared to handle it when it happens in real life. If we haven’t lost
someone close to us, we inevitably will. It’s just the nature of
life.

This book is dedicated to Conrad and Diane. These are dear people
in my ward. Conrad died of cancer and Diane was left at an age and in a
situation very much like Emily. Diane is someone I look up to and admire, and
her courage and faith inspired me, even though the common threads didn’t really
strike me until I was well into writing the book. She shared some of her
feelings and experiences with me, and she taught me much about the ministering
of angels that went into this book, and the next one. Their youngest son was
actually serving a mission when the cancer was diagnosed. It was very difficult
for the family and for all who love them. But they are a great example of
pressing forward that I wanted to capture in fiction. Diane later served a
mission and is doing well.

The really great thing that counteracts the
impact of Michael’s death is knowing that you can go back and read the previous
books over and over, and he will live forever.

Lily of the Manor

A Matter Of Honor

The Captain's Rose

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As a breast cancer survivor, I strongly encourage all of my female readers andtheir loved ones to practice keen self-awareness, get regular screenings, andsupport the ongoing movement for a cure. We as the women of this generation have so much to live for! ~Anita